AIDS LifeCycle 2012: Ming!

last year we featured a few of our friends who were riding from SF to LA for the AIDS LifeCycle ride, which benefits the SF AIDS Foundation and the LA Gay and Lesbian Center. (full disclosure: i had a family member die of AIDS in the early 90s. f!@k AIDS!)

we have a repeat rider everyone! ming is on his second year of training.

1. hi ming! you now have one aids lifecycle ride under your belt.
congrats! how was it?!
It was intense! I know sometimes that "intense" is used as a euphemism
for "bad," but that's not what I mean. I mean that I had so many
emotions while doing the ride last year. I was of course so hopeful
that this many people cared enough about this issue to volunteer their
time and energy and to fundraise for an end to HIV/AIDS. I also was
inspired and moved by the many HIV-positive people who were doing the
ride. Of course there were many moments when I was (extremely) crabby
about my sore legs, aching back, arms, butt, etc.. There were times
when I was struggling up a hill (or on a seemingly endless flat) by
myself feeling like I wanted to cry, then another rider would come
along and give me encouragement, or someone standing by the side of
the road would be cheering (just for me!) and hand me a little paper
flower or maybe a high five that would get me through. I also learned
a couple of important things. One, now I understand why people make
those faces when they are using the foam rollers. THOSE THINGS HURT.
Two, now when my chain falls off when I'm shifting to a low gear I
just shift back into the highest gear and keep pedaling. That chain
just hooks right back on - no need to stop and painstaking put the
chain on and mess with the derailleur etc.! I'm sure that's a metaphor
for life or something.

2. let's talk training. how has it changed from last year now that you
know what the ride is like? are you doing more or less?
I'm definitely less anxious about training this year, now that I've
done the ride once. However, I'm having a little more back pain this
year, so that's a challenge. I would say I'm doing the same amount of
training as last year, but am less _kan-cheong_ about it, taking my time to enjoy the scenery and rests.

3. fundraising! any fun dinners or parties planned? how can people contact you?
I've been kind of behind on fundraising this year! I'm hoping to do
one midweek dinner next week (Wednesday May 2nd) and maybe a brunch on
Saturday May 12th. They'll both be relatively low-key, I think. Or of
course, feel free to drop by my donation page, make a donation, and
send me a note with your donation that you want to come to the
dinner/brunch! :) [Insert crafty laughter here.]

4. now that this is your second time, how has your reason for doing
this changed? if it hasn't changed, please remind our readers why you
are doing this great ride.
HIV/AIDS is still something that marginalized communities (people and
especially women of color, LGBT people, the poor) are especially hard
hit by, and that's something we should all really be looking at and
working to make right. Doing the ride is just one small thing that I
hope helps to raise awareness and also provide some much needed
services in San Francisco. Also, similar to last year, my birthday
falls during the ride! First official year of my third decade, I will
be somewhere in the middle of California, hopefully going at 12 miles
an hour ;).

a big thanks to ming for sharing and please don't forget to donate to his page. i mean how can you refuse those sock monkey socks?!